Calling for a sharper focus on rapidly scaling firms, Ms Stewart will prioritise:

• Closer engagement with founders and the private sector – launching Scotland’s largest annual startup and scaleup survey and working directly with entrepreneurs to shape services around their needs.
• Tailored support for scaleups – designing interventions that support scale-ups to access new talent, capital and markets.
• Better measurement of performance and impact – introducing consistent reporting to track progress and provide a transparent picture of Scotland’s entrepreneurial health.

This builds on progress already delivered this year, including multi-year backing for Scottish EDGE, the launch of Dealroom Scotland, and ongoing investment in implementing Stewart’s Pathways report supporting more women to start and scale businesses.

The priorities were announced at the Institute for Small Business and Entrepreneurship Conference at the University of Strathclyde’s Technology and Innovation Centre in Glasgow, where Ms Stewart took part in a keynote session with Professor Eleanor Shaw OBE and Sir Tom Hunter. 

Ms Stewart said: “Scotland has made real progress towards becoming a first-rate startup nation. That foundation is essential – without a strong pipeline of promising new companies, there can be no scaleups. The next stage is to ensure these firms have the support they need to break through and grow at pace. That is a critical pathway to becoming a leading entrepreneurial economy.

“We have to ‘follow our founders’, supporting them from the spark of a new idea right through to rapid international growth. Scotland has world-class entrepreneurs, and many are the economy’s unsung heroes. We should celebrate and acknowledge their achievements whilst making sure nothing holds them back from growing.

“Our entrepreneurs have the talent and ambition to compete on the world stage. Our job is to remove barriers, connect them with the right support, and make Scotland one of the best HQs to build and scale a business. That is my aspiration.”

Kate Forbes, Deputy First Minister, said: “Scotland can be proud of the progress made in recent years in building one of Europe’s fastest-growing entrepreneurial economies. That success is down to the talent and drive of our founders, alongside the support of many partners across the ecosystem. 

“Ana Stewart’s plans will take that progress to the next level by focusing on how we help more of our companies to grow. Her emphasis on working closely with founders and listening to their needs is exactly the right approach and the Scottish Government is fully committed to backing her vision.”

Irene Graham, CEO of the ScaleUp Institute, welcomed Stewart’s approach: “Collaboration at a national level is a prerequisite for building a high-functioning scaleup ecosystem. It’s encouraging to see Ana Stewart champion scaleups and put these founders and leaders at the heart of Scotland’s next phase of entrepreneurial growth.”

Sir Tom Hunter said: “Scotland needs a laser focus on building scaling businesses. Why? If we double the number of scaleups from the estimated 675 today, we’d create around 75,000 new high value jobs; that drives economic growth.

“Ana has the talent and skill to deliver on this agenda and I, as well as many others, will support her on that journey.”